Briar Rose -- Fanfiction
by unshakespearean
Summary: A piece based on the-untempered-prism's Briar Rose, per the request of soniadalal (both users on deviantART). Enjoy! Cover image (c) the-untempered-prism, Doctor Who (c) BBC. 10/Rose, fluffy, oneshot. Rated T for safety, but probably only a K .


"Rose?" asked the Doctor as he tried doors. "Rose, where are you?" He opened every door he found, using his sonic screwdriver to unlock the locked ones. "Rose?"

He had no idea where she was. She could be anywhere in this bleeding castle. Who knew where that woman had taken her?

He should've known all along, when the woman "recognized" Rose as the "princess" and demanded that Rose come with her. It seemed fishy; there was nobody else in that palace. And there was something odd about the palace anyway, something... alien. And now he had lost Rose, his Rose.

He spent the whole night looking, but to no avail, until he walked directly into into a long, spirally staircase went at least ten stories up.

After swearing a bit at his klutziness, he realized that _he had walked directly into a long, spirally staircase that in any cliche would lead him directly to Rose_.

"Worth a try," he muttered, so after dodging the spot where he slammed into the staircase, he began climbing up the stairs.

There was nothing at the top of the staircase but a locked door. _Cliche_, he thought, as he sonic-ed it open and walked inside. As soon as he walked in, his hearts stopped.

The room was small, candlelit, with one window that looked like a rose. Rosy red curtains surrounded that window, and real rose vines grew up it and around the grey stone windowsill where Rose, his Rose, was lying on her back, her golden curls falling onto the white pillow, the pink and gold morning light falling on her face, lighting up her features. She was still in the pink and gold silk dress the TARDIS had given her, and a soft sheer veil was draped over her legs, sparkling in the tinges of sunlight.

"Rose!" he exclaimed, running to her side. "Rose, wake up." He shook her shoulder, but she laid still, not moving an inch.

"Rose?" He touched her forehead, took her hand, feeling for a pulse. "Rose, please, please wake up," he said. He listened carefully, his superior Time Lord sense of hearing alert for her breaths and heartbeat, but he couldn't hear it. She was still as a statue, not moving or breathing.

"No," he whispered. "Oh, no, Rose, please, please don't be dead." He quickly scanned her with the sonic screwdriver, and it revealed that she had been poisoned, and she had very little time left. Ten minutes, at best.

"Rose," he said, tears in his eyes. He bent down, placing one hand in her hair and another one on top of her, miserable that he was going to watch Rose die.

Unless...

_A cliche_, he thought. _A great big cliche that could never actually happen unless the prince had magic powers..._

A little potentially-helpful voice in his head told him, _Remember your regrown hand_.

"What?" he said out loud. He thought for a minute... regrown hand... regrown hand... Yes! Christmas Sycorax invasion! And he had regrown his hand! But... what did that... oh, brilliant! He might not have magic powers, but he was a Time Lord who could regenerate and he could use that to save Rose's life.

He continued cradling her in his arms, calling forward his regeneration energy. He wouldn't need much, just enough to counteract the poison and revive her. His hands began to glow with that golden light.

And she began to glow too, but not with the deep light of regeneration, with a paler golden light, almost white, that he instantly recognized as a purer form of time energy that she had absorbed from the TARDIS. The TARDIS energy, plus his regeneration energy, would not only heal her, he realized, but it would give her partial immunity to the passage of time. She'd age, but much more slowly.

They could have their forever.

Just as soon as he saved her life.

He had to transfer the energy, but how? How would he- _oh_.

Just like when he took the vortex out of her.

Just like a cliche.

No. Not a cliche. A fairy tale.

He bent down and kissed her, and he could feel the regeneration energy rushing into her body, mixing with the time energy. She began to glow all over, surrounded in a halo of light, and she began to breathe. Her eyes fluttered open, the same bright brown as always, but with a tinge of gold ringing each iris, a mark of the new energy flowing through her veins, slowing her aging. A happily ever after, shining in her eyes.

"Hello," she whispered, a slight smile forming on her face.

"Rose," he said, tears still in his eyes. He reached under her and picked her up bridal-style, like a princess. His beautiful princess. "Oh, Rose, my Rose, I was so scared for a moment there."

Tears formed in her eyes. She threw her arms around his neck, nuzzling her head into his shoulder. "I was afraid you weren't going to make it in time," she said as tears fell down her face.

The Doctor kissed her forehead lightly. "Shhhh, it's okay now," he cooed in her ear. "I've got you. You're safe. I wouldn't ever let you get hurt." He held her even closer.

Rose sighed a little, and she closed her eyes, unafraid to sleep now that she was safely cradled in the Doctor's arms.

The Doctor smiled a bit at the beautiful girl, sound asleep with her head on his shoulder. "I love you, Rose," he said quietly.

Her eyes popped open. "I love you too." She gave him her favorite cheeky smile.

Just then, the woman from earlier appeared. "You rescued the princess," she said, her lips curling into a smile. She reached out her hand to touch Rose.

"No!" said the Doctor, stepping back. "Don't touch her." Rose held onto the Doctor in fear.

"Shhhh," said the woman. "I won't hurt your princess, Doctor," she cooed. "I'd never hurt our princess."

"Who are you?!" he asked, his eyes filling with fury.

The woman raised her arms in the air, and the palace walls began crumbling down. Rose screamed, clutching to the Doctor. The Doctor tried to run, but he couldn't; his feet were planted to the ground. The dust cleared, to reveal... the TARDIS console room?

"What the-?" The Doctor looked around, touching the wall of the TARDIS. It hummed in response. "How did we get on the TARDIS?"

"You never left." The woman's voice rang out from the TARDIS console.

"TARDIS, you sneaky little-"

"It was what had to be done, Doctor," said the TARDIS. "It was high time you two admitted you loved each other."

"So was Rose really poisoned?"

"Nope, but you did give up regeneration energy, so she is-"

"Not going to age! Oh, brilliant! Rose, did you hear that? You and I can have our forever!"

Rose grinned, pulling the Doctor in for a kiss.

"Worth it?" asked the TARDIS.

"We'll need to talk about scaring the crap out of us," said the Doctor. "But yes. Worth it."

"Worth it," Rose agreed, and, still in the pink and gold gown, took the Doctor's hand and ran with him right back to her bedroom, so their happily ever after could begin.


End file.
